Dye image formation in silver halide light-sensitive materials is effected by exposure to light and color development processing in which a developing agent, e.g., an aromatic primary amine, oxidized with silver halide is reacted with a dye forming coupler. In this image formation system, color reproduction is generally achieved by a subtractive color process, in which blue, green, and red colors are reproduced by forming their complementary colors, i.e., yellow, magenta, and cyan dyes, respectively.
Cyan dye forming couplers widely employed include phenol couplers and naphthol couplers. However, dye images obtained from the conventionally employed phenol and naphthol couplers have some remaining unsolved problems of preservability. For example, dye images obtained from 2-acylaminophenol cyan couplers as described in U.S. Pat. Nos. 2,367,531, 2,369,929, 2,423,730 and 2,801,171, etc. are generally inferior in fastness to heat; those obtained from 2,5-diacylaminophenol cyan couplers as described in U.S. Pat. Nos. 2,772,162 and 2,895,826 are generally inferior in fastness to light; and those obtained from 1-hydroxy-2-naphthamide cyan couplers are generally insufficient in fastness to both light and heat, and particularly heat and humidity.
5-Hydroxy-6-acylaminocarbostyril cyan couplers described in Japanese Patent Application (OPI) Nos. 104333/81 and 159861/85 (the term "OPI" as used herein means an "unexamined published Japanese patent application"), and 4-hydroxy-5-acylamino-oxyindole couplers, 4-hydroxy-5-acylamino-2,3-dihydro-1,3-benzimidazol-2-one couplers, etc. described in Japanese Patent Application (OPI) No. 105229/83 are excellent in light- and heat-fastness but have the disadvantage of yellow stain in the white background or unexposed areas.
Some examples of the condensed ring type couplers included in the formula (I) of the present invention and some examples of the 2,5-diacylamino type cyan couplers are disclosed in Japanese Patent Application (OPI) Nos. 22342/86, 11744/86, 171953/84, 166955/84, 185335/84 and 198454/84, but these prior art references do not teach the use of these cyan dye forming couplers in combination.